1. Technical Field
This invention relates to an instrument for removal of cerumen (ear wax) from a person's ear and, more particularly, to a new device that features a mechanism of actively moving the cerumen removal element (cleaning tool) and a mechanism for storing, disposing and deploying subsequent clean cerumen removal elements.
2. Prior Art
When wax build-up is in an ear canal a person may try to remove the wax with a cotton tipped applicator. The person may get most of the wax out, but the wax is usually pushed farther down into the ear canal, where it becomes impacted. Adequate examination of the eardrum is impossible. A quick, painless removal of the wax by a doctor becomes difficult and frustrating. Although wax rarely causes deafness, it must be removed. If the doctor cannot remove the wax deftly the first time with a looped curette scoop, then the wax in the ear canal must be washed out. This ear enema is frightening to the person and time consuming for the doctor.
Numerous tubular ear passage manipulators have been provided in the prior art that are adapted to extract cerumen, to massage and to generally cleanse the tubular passage of the ear. These devices generally consist of an elongated element with a cleansing member at one tip thereof that can be safely fitted into the ear.
A drawback of such ear cleaning devices is that no means is provided for cleaning the outer regions of the ear canal so that, even after cleaning using that device, wax or other dirt can remain at the entrance to the ear canal, or a short distance inwardly therefrom, which may be unsightly. Another disadvantage is the need to manually operate such a cleaning device. Many people do not perform this task properly and are at risk of injuring the structure of their inner ear, which could lead to deafness. The previously mentioned cleaning devices also continuously use only one cleaning member, which is not sanitary and limits the use of the device to only one person.
Accordingly, a need remains for an ear cleaning device in order to overcome the above-noted shortcomings. The present invention satisfies such a need by providing an ear cleaning device that is easy, effective and convenient to use, and also provides improved health benefits over previous examples in the prior art. Such a device can conveniently be offered in both adult and pediatric versions for use by all people. The automated ear cleaning device allows for more effective cleaning of the ears, leading to more accurate diagnosis of ear ailments, while also reducing the risk of hearing loss and equilibrium problems related to excessive cerumen accumulation. Such a device is appreciated by adult, parents, health professionals, and those with physical limitations that prevent them from manually swabbing their ears.